Study programme

Economics: Public Policy

Distinguished professors at the Amsterdam School of Economics combine eminent teaching skills with an active research agenda, resulting in a programme that is both knowledge-intensive and research-based. You won't regret following the Public Policy track of the Economics Master’s programme in Amsterdam.

Programme Structure

The Master of Science in Economics is a one-year programme of 60 ECTS credits
(1 ECTS credit = 0,5 US credit). The course schedule is listed below. The
academic year runs from September to the beginning of July and is divided into
two semesters, each with three study periods. Please refer to the academic
calendar for the exact dates.

First semester

In the first period you will acquire an advanced level of understanding of
the core of economics: Microeconomics & Game Theory, Macroeconomics and
Applied Econometrics. During this first part you will choose your specialisation
track; in the second part of the first semester you will enroll in the first
three specialisation courses.

Second semester

In the first period of the second semester you will specialise further by
attending two specialisation courses. You may choose electives such as Impact
Evaluation: Development and Public Policy (or Economics of the Public sector),
Regulation, Financial Institutions & Banking (or Experimental Economics),
Public Finance & Fiscal Policy, Competition Policy (or Economics of Growth).

At the same time you will prepare yourself for your thesis, which you will
complete in the last part of the second semester.

Thesis

The Master’s thesis is the final requirement to be completed prior to
graduation. It will be supervised by one of the economics researchers from the
relevant field.

Internships and exchange

Students who have completed the curriculum of the Public Economic Policy track will have the possibility of doing an internship or go on exchange. This especially gives international students a unique opportunity to experience the Dutch labour market.